A mediaevalist trying to be a philosopher and a philosopher trying to be a mediaevalist write about theology, philosophy, scholarship, books, the middle ages, and especially the life, times, and thought of the Doctor Subtilis, the Blessed John Duns Scotus.

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Members of P.A.A.L. Take Note

Vergil's second Eclogue is the lament of a shepherd who has a crush on another shepherd:

Formosum pastor Corydon ardebat Alexin,

and so forth. Spenser's "The Shepeardes Calender" is a series of Eclogues modelled to some extent on Vergil, one for each month of the year. "Ianuarie" has Colin Clout, Spenser's Arcandian name for himself, mentioning that another shepherd "Hobbinol" seeks his love as well. Fear not, however. This isn't what it sounds like. Spenser provides his own glosses to the "Calender," and the "glosse" to this stanza, after mentioning Vergil's second Eclogue, goes on:

In thys place seemeth to be some sauour of disorderly loue, which the learned call paederastice: but it is gathered beside his meaning. For who that hath red Plato his dialogue called Alcybiades, Xenophon and Maximus Tyrius of Socrates opinions, may easily perceiue, that such loue is muche to be alowed and liked of, specially so meant, as Socrates vsed it: who sayth, that in deede he loued Alcybiades extremely, yet not Alcybiades person, but hys soule, which is Alcybiades owne selfe. And so is paederastice much to be preferred before gynerastice, that is the loue whiche enflameth men with lust toward woman kind. But yet let no man thinke, that herein I stand with Lucian or hys deuelish disciple Vnico Arentino, in defense of execrable and horrible sinnes of forbidden and vnlawful fleshlinesse. Whose abominable errour is fully confuted of Perionius, and others.